It looks like Stamp Fairtex has withdrawn from her upcoming title defence fight at ONE 167 due to a knee injury.
Stamp Fairtex Ruled Out of ONE 167
Stamp Fairtex has been forced to withdraw from her upcoming bout which was for Stamp’s ONE Championship Atomweight MMA Title. This is due to an injury which she has received while training. Stamp Fairtex was scheduled to be in the main event against the upcoming number 2 ranked contender Denice Zamboanga at ONE 167. Speaking about the incident the champion said to ONE Championship;
“My sparring partner was behind me, and she was going to take me down. She grabbed my body and lifted me up, but since she is smaller than me, when she lifted me up, she couldn’t lift me that high, and my leg was still touching the ground.
“Then, she twisted. When she twisted, my leg was still touching the ground, so my knee got twisted. When it twisted, it made a loud noise. So, I stopped immediately and went for an MRI after that. [And the doctor said] my meniscus was torn.”
Stamp Fairtex Statement
This fight against Denice Zamboanga was going to be Stamp Fairtex’s first title defence of her Women’s Atomweight MMA title. Stamp Fairtex was able to claim the title when she fought Ham Seo Hee for the vacant title last September. Stamp Fairtex was able to clinch the title with a 3rd round TKO victory. While Stamp will no longer compete at ONE 167 she did have a message for the fans who were looking to see the champion in action;
“I worked hard and was very focused on this fight. Accidents happen all the time.
“For those who were going to watch me, I would like you to give encouragement to all Thai fighters. Tawanchai [PK Saenchai], Jo [Nattawut], Rodtang [Jitmuangnon], and Mikey [Musumeci].”
Stamp Fairtex has since undergone surgery to repair her torn meniscus and will be facing months of rehab ahead of her before she comes back to action. While she is facing months out of action this also brings into question her participation at ONE 168 Denver.
ONE 167 Card Update
With Stamp Fairtex now out of her upcoming bout against Denice Zamboanga. Denice Zamboanga will stay on the card and a new opponent will be announced shortly. The co-main event was supposed to be for the ONE Championship Muay Thai World Title. Defending champion Tawanchai PK Saenchai will be looking for his first title defence against number 3-ranked Jo Nattawut in the now main event.